I’ve been suffering from spring fever, I want to get back in the gardens!! Maybe I’ve been watching to many gardening videos on YouTube lately.  It has inspired me to make room for my grow lights again.  Tomorrow I’ll be making room in the summer kitchen to set them up.  Hopefully hubby and I will be able to get the stand up from the basement ok.  It’s very heavy!  He built it for me the first winter after we moved in to this house.

We’ve both been thinking next summer will be a cold one.  I checked the Farmers Almanac online and for Southern Ontario they are saying a cold and dry summer.  Hopefully it wont be to bad!  But I’m planning my gardens for a cold season.  I’m just about done my seed order and there will be many Canadian and Russian variety’s this year!

This coming year we are going to start using a living mulch system.  I posted some videos in our forum last fall about these. Basically to start we will be using black plastic mulch in the planting rows.  In between them  we are planing a mix of red and white clover and alfalfa.  As this grows through the season it will be cut and let to compost in place.  This should provide cover for many beneficial insects and feed the soil steadily through the season.

I filmed this video yesterday with my new camera, it was a Christmas gift.  I love it!  The video is coming out very well!  Sorry for it showing so small, I had a setting wrong in the video editor.  I think I have it ok now.

The weather has been so nice, truly a very mild winter for our area!  Maybe that’s why the gardening bug is biting eh?  The winter storm I mentioned in the video so far has not been much.  Last night we had a little rain, a few snow flurries this afternoon and now more rain.  It’s funny what the weathermen are calling storms this year!

Bruce Morgan has come up with a way to tunnel the chickens right to the area of the garden where he needs the work done.  This reminds me of a chicken tractor except that you have a main chicken house and use wire tunnels to take the chickens to a larger fenced in area.  I think that these smaller sections of tunnels would be easier for one person to move alone as well.

Has anyone else tried something like this?  I’m planning to go with a living mulch system next year, but this would be a great idea as well!

Now that Christmas has passed or just about if you celebrate the 12 days of Christmas, I thought we would have a final link up for all the projects you couldn’t share before Christmas.  Many of us have family reading our blogs and you wouldn’t want them sneaking a peek.

This has always been one of my favorite crochet hat patterns. It’s a unisex pattern and works up to give a ribbed pattern. My favorite yarn lately for these hats is Bernat Roving. It’s a bulky yarn that’s 80% acrylic and 20% wool, it does need hand washing but works up quickly and stays soft. However any bulky yarn will work well for this hat.

Crochet Ribbed Hat

Size: One size fits most teen to adult

Gauge: 3 SC per inch

Yarn type: Bulky

Hook: 6mm or J

Chain 35 stitches.

Row 1. SC into the second chain from the hook and in each chain stitch until the end of the row. Chain 1, turn.

Row 2. SC into the bl of each stitch across the row. Chain 1, turn.

Rows 3 to 38. Repeat row 2.

Fold hat in half matching up first and last rows. Slip stitch the seam together, fasten off yarn after last stitch.

Leaving a long tail weave a running stitch around the top edge of the hat, pull to gather. Knot yarn. If there is a small opening at the top sew closed with remaining tail yarn, knot off and weave the end in.

I had planned to make dolls for the girls gifts.  The first one has been started but they wont be done in time.  That’s ok!  They will be thrilled with them in January for a surprise.  Instead I’m going to make some pretty headbands for Christmas.  All the hats on my list are finished and I’m working on the last few cowls that should be done this evening.  Photos and patterns will be coming soon.  Instead of trying to “hide” and work on gifts I have found it the easiest to work in plain sight.  During the day I curl up with the kids to watch Christmas movies or read Christmas stories or audio books.  Then I work on gifts for other people.  Later when the littles are sleeping, I keep hubby company while I work on the kids gifts.  It’s been working out lovely!

This afternoon I’m planning to start my baking.  I’m trying to decide what cookies to start with…  Snickerdoodles or shortbread’s!

Our weather has been very mild this year.  Everyone was saying how they thought it would be a hard winter, including myself.  Hubby was sure it would be a mild year, so far he is right!  Our temps have been between – 10 C and 10 C for the most part.  We’ll get a few inches of snow, then it will warm up and rain.  That pattern keeps repeating, tomorrow it’s to rain!  We might get a little snow on Christmas eve.  But the kids have been worrying about a green Christmas.  I think it will be their first one.  In this area of Canada it’s very odd to not have snow at Christmas time!  I can only remember a few green Christmases in my life time.

One of my favorite Christmas songs is White Christmas by Jim Reeves.  When ever I hear his music I remember my Grandma, as he was one of her favorite singers.

What are your favorite Christmas songs?  How are your Christmas plans coming?

A Knitters Night before Christmas

‘Twas the night before Christmas and all around me was unfinished knitting not under the tree. The stockings weren’t hung by the chimney with care ‘cause the heels and toes had not a stitch there.

The children were nestled all snug in their beds, but I had not finished the caps for their heads. Dad was asleep; he was no help at all, and the sweater for him was six inches too small.

When out on the lawn there arose such a clatter, I put down my needles to see what was the matter. Away to the window I flew like a flash, tripped over my yarn and fell with a crash.

The tangle of yarn that lay deep as the snow reminded me how much I still had to go. Out on my lawn, I heard such a noise, I thought it would wake both Dad and the boys.

And although I was tired, my brain a bit thick, I knew in a moment it must be Saint Nick!

What I heard then left me somewhat perplexed-ed, for not a name I heard was what I expected. “Move Ashford; move Lopi; move Addie & Clover; move Reynolds; move Starmore; and Noro – move over!”

“Paton, don’t circle round, stay in the line. Come now, you sheep, you’ll work out just fine! I know this is hard being just your first year, I’d hate to go back to eight tiny reindeer.”

I peered over the sill; what I saw was amazing, eight woolly sheep on my lawn all a’grazing.

And then, in a twinkle, I heard at my door Santa’s coming across the porch floor. I rose from my knees and got back on my feet, and as I turned round, Saint Nick I did meet.

He was dressed all in wool from his head to his toes and his cloths were hand knit from above to below.

A bright Fairisle sweater he wore on his back, and his toys were all stuffed in a aran knit sack. His cap was a wonder of bobbles and lace, a beautiful frame for his rosy red face.

The scarf round his neck could have stretched for a mile, and the socks peeking over his boots were Argyle. The backs of his mittens bore an intricate cable, and suddenly on one I spied a small label.

SC was the duplicate stitch on the cuff, and I asked “Hay Nick, did you knit all this stuff?”

He proudly replied “Ho-ho-ho, yes I did. I learned how to knit when I was a kid.”

He was chubby and plump, a quite well-dressed old man, and I laughed to myself for I’d thought of a plan.

I flashed him a grin and jumped in the air, the next thing he knew he was tied to a chair. He spoke not a word, but looked in his lap where I’d laid my needles and yarn for a cap.

He quickly began knitting, first one cap then two; for the first time I thought I might really get through. He put heels on the stockings and toes on some socks while I sat back drinking scotch on the rocks!!

So quickly, like magic his needles they flew, that he was all finished by quarter to two. He sprang for his sleigh when I let him go free, and over his shoulder he looked back at me.

And I heard him exclaim as he sailed past the moon “Next year start your knitting sometime around June!”

- Author Unknown

Welcome everyone to the third link up this year for our Gifts From The Heart ~ A Handmade Christmas blog hop.  Sorry for posting this a day latter then I normally would.  I had some computer problems, but I’m back!  I’m so looking forward to reading all your Christmas posts!  Please grab the Christmas button code in the sidebar to link back to the blog hop, so others can join in the fun!

The link up will stay open from today until next Tuesday.  I’ll post a new one each Wednesday morning, so make sure to come back and join in the fun!

Gauge really isn’t important with this, but I was using worsted weight yarn and an H hook.  A note on the snowman’s hat, normally when you single crochet you chain 1.  In this pattern I chained 2, because I wanted the hat to be a “little” lopsided.  I wanted the effect of a snowman just made by children.  You know what I mean right?  By the time the hat gets on the top, it’s been much loved. lol  If you want a smooth and neat edge on your hat, then chain 1 instead!

Chain 4, join with a slip stitch.

1st Row work 10 dc in the center of ring.  Join to the first one with a sl.  Chain 3 turn.

2nd Row *Work 2 dc in first stitch, work 1 dc in next stitch. *  Repeat ** all the way around, join with sl.

Repeat row 2 until desired size is reached.  In my example I stopped after row 2.

Weave ends in.

Hat

Row 1 Chain 16, slip stitch back through all chains.  At the end slip stich backwards 4 stitches. Chain 2

Row 2 *Sc in 8 stitches.  Chain 2 turn.*

Repeat ** until hat is desired height.  Cut yarn, weave in ends and sew to snowman face.

I used google eyes and sequins for the mouth and nose.  However I think mini pompoms would be very cute to!